Sugar Grove, St. Charles name new chiefs

Lombard officer to lead Sugar Grove police department

Sugar Grove officials liked the resume of the Lombard officer they selected to be their new police chief.

There is his long tenure in Lombard, where he has served as deputy chief for 12 years. There's his experience with the 2012 Ryder Cup, which will come in handy when Sugar Grove hosts the International Crown in 2016. And village leaders liked his participation in several specialized academies.

The most impressive quality was how Pat Rollins "projected himself" and the importance he said he would place on community outreach to residents, said village President Sean Michels.

"Pat stood out," Michels said, among the 130 applicants the village considered. Rollins came across so friendly during the interview process, Michels said, that administrators had to ask him if he could play the "tough cop" if needed.

Rollins' family owned a grocery store, and it's apparent that the customer-first background stuck with him, Michels said, and means he sees his role as an ambassador to Sugar Grove residents.

"In this day and age, it's important to be proactive," Michels said.

Rollins said that when he heard about the opening, he took a drive through Sugar Grove to see if it would be a good fit. He stopped and anonymously talked to residents and left convinced that leading the department of 13 officers was "something I was going to be excited about and would leave Lombard for."

Rollins graduated from the FBI National Academy in Quantico, Va., and Northwestern University's Center for Public Safety executive management program. He also recently launched a "violent intruder" program in DuPage and Cook counties.

Rollins, 51, will replace Ron Moser, who has served as interim chief for the last year. Moser did much to revitalize the police department during his short tenure, Michels said. The village knew of his retirement plans, but officials wanted to wait until after the spring election to choose a new chief.

Rollins will step into his new role on July 8 and will be paid $100,500 annually, Michels said.

Elsewhere in Kane County, there's another new chief — though he's hardly new to the role.

In St. Charles, acting Fire Chief Joe Schelstreet removed the "acting" from his title on Monday, when the City Council approved his hire as fire chief. A longtime employee of the St. Charles Fire Department, Schelstreet has served as the acting fire chief since November when Patrick Mullen retired.

"Assistant Chief Schelstreet meets the qualifications, has provided exemplary service to the department and the community for many years, and has the skills and abilities to lead the department into the future," said City Administrator Brian Townsend in a release.

Schelstreet said serving as the St. Charles fire chief has been his career aspiration. His years in the department, along with his months as acting chief, have allowed him to forge relationships in the community, he said.

Rising through the department's ranks and acting as chief "has given me a real good hold on the position, and we should be able to move forward rapidly."

Schelstreet began as a firefighter in St. Charles in 1988. He was promoted to lieutenant in 1992, captain in 1997 and assistant chief in 2003.

According to Townsend, Schelstreet will oversee several initiatives in coming months, including completing the fire department's accreditation and a new contract with the union that represents the firefighters. Negotiations with the union are going very well, he said, and he expects a contract within a few weeks. The accreditation process should wrap up this summer as well, Schelstreet said.